The clouds covered the sun while the ocean continued to batter itself onto the many Horde ships in the area. The Sea of Sigh was the smallest body of water on Etheria and is considered insignificant to most. Despite this common theory, Octavia stands proudly at the launch hanger along with several other troopers, watching the ocean around them. The Horde Admiral bit her lip. She hadn't heard anything from Hordak for weeks. Due to the fact that the Sea of Sigh is a very isolated area in which there aren't any Horde bases stationed near for many miles, makes it difficult for the fleet to receive any orders (or news) from the Horde. Octavia scoffed at the scene before her, it would probably be one more week before she would receive any more supplies from Hordak.
At least she was hoping that it would be one more week.
There were various underwater monsters in the area and in some cases intelligent beings that were condemned to slavery. Although if the Horde Admiral's fleet does not receive new supplies, then it would only be a matter of time before they were rendered helpless. Despite the advanced Horde technology at their disposal the Fright Zone was just too far away to make contact.
Maybe stationing a large naval base in an isolated area on a planet that is known to have many unexpected occurrences was not one of Hordak's better ideas.
"This is taking too long," she clicked her tongue. "If we wait for Hordak's shipment any longer then we'd be better off jumping over board!"
"Admiral," a trooper pointed at something in the sky. "Look there!"
Octavia stared at the clouds, but only saw a small speck in the sky.
"Is it a rebel spy?" she clicked.
Whether or not the object was harmful or friendly the Admiral knew that either way she would find out once she saw it up close.
"Shoot it down."
The troopers held up their stun sticks and began to shoot at the small target.
"Hey! Wait! Don't shoot at me you buncha bucket of bolts!" Imp shouted at the troopers.
Octavia immediately signaled her unit to cease fire upon recognizing the small creature. The Admiral knew Imp to some extent, but most of all she knew that if he was damaged in any way then Hordak would have her head. Before Octavia could formally apologize to the small, blue demon he flew nearly into her face.
"Octavia!" he shouted desperately. "You gotta come to the Fright Zone quick! Some really bad stuff is happening and Shadow Weaver betrayed Hordak and now he isn't in control of the Horde and I overheard the troopers at the gate saying that the Four Unholy Kings are coming and everyone's out to get me for all the bad stuff I did to them and we need to help Hordak!"
Imp grabbed the octopus's hand in a pitiful attempt to drag her to the control room. Octavia stared at the blue creature in disbelief over his words. Hordak was not in control? How could this have happened? Despite the annoyances at being stationed in a small body of water, Octavia had always considered Hordak to be a good leader. He never killed and he always stood proudly while giving orders.
Hordak was different from many other commanders.
Octavia was not born on Etheria and instead had been raised in another world that was conquered by the Horde. Her home planet was now dry of water and reeked of death, the world that was at one time renowned for it's crystal seas was nothing more than a barren wasteland caused by one of the Unholy Kings. The Admiral did not know which King ruled her world, he or she never showed their face or revealed their conquest. All there was to prove his existence was the destruction he caused. Octavia was one of the few to have been kept alive, but only because of her fighting ability. Eventually she was stationed on Etheria under the rule of Horde Prime's brother; life was better when Hordak took control.
He rarely killed.
Octavia comically slapped Imp away from her hand with one of her tentacles.
"Hey what'd ya do that for you ugly octopus meanie!"
Why was she remembering her past now? Why were the Unholy Kings coming?
The woman then clenched her fists. No. She couldn't let the Unholy Kings take over. Not like her world. Who knew what they would do? In order to now show weakness the Horde Admiral hid her fear of the Unholy Kings from the troopers. Octavia stood proudly and looked upon her soldiers, ignoring Imp's childish cries over her hurting him. Hordak was the only one who should be in control of Etheria.
"Troopers! To your stations!," she clicked. "Full speed towards the Fright Zone!"
It wasn't going to happen again.
She had to find Hordak and restore order.
Then everything would be normal again.
The Unholy Kings were each known for their ruthlessness and unique style of warfare. Any who dared to challenge their might were killed instantly without any remorse. Many call these beings to be psychotic or filled with bloodlust, but they considered themselves to be cautious. A rebellion can stir up trouble, and despite their unholy strength the four rarely underestimate any resistance, no matter how small they may seem from the beginning. In order to move forward one must not fear death. They must be ready to cause it and to be a part of it.
These beings have conquered most of the planets of the Horde Empire and each is responsible for the welfare of hundreds of worlds. Although for all four of the Kings to be summoned to conquer one planet, is almost unheard of. Almost.
No one dare questions Horde Prime, no matter how powerful they seem to be.
In the Fright Zone the Kings have arrived, greeted by Shadow Weaver, in the throne room. Dragora leaned against the back wall of the room where the shadow's nearly concealed her presence. She remained silent, nearly invisible to the ear while MagiTek stood near Shadow Weaver at the throne. The witch noticed that one of the Kings was missing, but immediately shoved the thought aside. MagiTek was the only Unholy King she wanted to speak with.
The view screen suddenly turned on in the room, Shadow Weaver immediately looked up.
"I'm sorry to bother you Mistress," the trooper spoke with in his mechanized tone, "but we have reports that the naval base stationed at the Sea of Sigh is now heading towards your location."
Shadow Weaver wheezed.
"Octavia? Coming here?"
"Yes," answered MagiTek surprising Shadow Weaver and the trooper. "I had sensed it a moment ago; it seems that her intentions are of a violent nature. How interesting."
"Violent?" the witch asked. "She is planning an attack on the Fright Zone? That would be foolish."
Due to the Unholy King's arrival it would be very unwise to attack the Fright Zone, but even so why is she doing this? Shadow Weaver turned her attention the view screen and was about to give him his orders on the situation.
"I will go."
MagiTek and Shadow Weaver stared at Dragora in shock; the silent Unholy King had spoken. MagiTek kept his jaw shut and Shadow Weaver was almost certain that she could sense fear in him. Before the witch could protest Dragora walked out of the throne room and towards the exit.
MagiTek looked at the view screen, "You need not worry trooper, the situation is being taken care of."
Despite the soldier's confusion he ended the link.
Shadow Weaver faced MagiTek.
"She is just one woman, are you sure we can trust her to deal with an entire naval base on her own?"
"Dragora has a magical sense as well so she knows where to go," MagiTek's voice hinted fear as he spoke. "Besides, it is not wise to question Dragora."
"Dragora," said the witch in a thoughtful voice. "I have not heard much about this Unholy King, you spoke very little about her."
"She is the newest Unholy King," he glanced at the window behind the throne. "Dragora is the commander of several corps of the Horde and occupies many positions in those corps of the Horde army."
MagiTek's voice grew grim.
"She is every soldier, every technician, and every strategist."
The witch stared at him in disbelief, "Doesn't she have any troopers, any scientists? Surely she could not commander an entire planet on her own."
MagiTek glanced at her.
"It is not wise to question Dragora."
"Are all the laser cannons operational?" Octavia asked the trooper.
"Yes ma'am," he saluted. "The magna beam is fully charged and the censors are on maximum alert, no one can get through."
"Good," she clicked while looking back at the view screen. "It will only be a matter of time before we reach the Fright Zone."
"That'll teach Shadow Wimpy not to mess with me again!" Imp crossed his arms on his chest as he floated near Octavia. "Once we blow her head off then Hordak will come back an-"
The blue creature stopped shouting in victory when several large explosions resonated throughout the ship. Alarms rang as loud as they could in the control room.
"What's going on? (!)" Octavia shouted over the alarm.
The soldiers vigorously tried to maintain control of the ship.
"Twelve of our vessels have been destroyed, Admiral!" one trooper shouted.
"Twelve? All at once? That's impossible!" Octavia grabbed the intercom. How this massacre was accomplished was not a major concern, it was how to deal with the situation at hand that mattered. "All units prepare for battle!"
The Horde Admiral ran out of the control room while Imp followed closely behind. Upon reaching the outside hanger another explosion detonated. Using her tentacles the woman managed to block most of the debris that landed on her ship. Other troopers who held their stun guns also dodged the rubble. Once the dust cleared Octavia opened her eyes and the soldiers held their weapons ready, only to lower them in shock. All the other vessels around them had been destroyed; their ship was the only one that remained standing.
"How could this be?" Octavia's eyes widened.
Imp grew angry, "What the heck is going on he-"
Octavia was too focused on the situation.
This was impossible, it was just impossible. How could there be no sign of a ship or laser canon? What could have caused this immense massacre without being noticed? Before Octavia could add more questions she heard large noises behind her. The sound of metal hitting metal. The Admiral immediately turned around only to find that all of her troopers (human and machine alike) had been beheaded while their metal armor clanged against the steel floor. Octavia immediately stepped back in horror.
How? When?
The Admiral then felt a searing pain throughout her body. Her nerves jolted sparks of ache as if she had been wounded. Octavia barely managed to glance behind her due to the pain, but once she did the Admiral nearly screamed out upon inspection. All four of her tentacles had been severed from her body in one clean swipe.
A shadow loomed over her.
Octavia looked up at the figure, her eyes showing her intense pain and shock. The person merely stood before her with Imp squirming in her free hand, the other held a sword ready to strike. Dragora gave a twisted smile as if she enjoyed the Admiral's fear. The sword came down while the world around her blackened, letting Octavia's scream resonate through the ocean.
Hordak slapped another bug that decided to land on his neck. It was annoying to walk through the forests of Etheria. Their dense jungles and unpredictable magic was an immensely irritating to risk. The Horde Commander knew that if he stayed in the sky any longer then he would eventually be spotted, but that didn't mean that he wasn't tempted to fly again.
In fact he still had the jet pack attachment still on his back.
Hordak scoffed.
It probably wasn't such a good idea to leave his chest armor back at the Fright Zone. He knew that there was no way of hiding from the Horde, but the armor did provide some protection. Just earlier he had to face a serpent-like creature in combat; how he hated snakes. Although, without any type of defense or protection Hordak's skin was damaged, front and back.
The tyrant suddenly gripped onto a tree branch for support. His body felt unusual, not weak just strange. Despite Hordak's rejection towards magic he couldn't deny that he had mastered it at one time, and the concept of sensing powerful beings was not totally foreign to him. Although it still was shocking to say the least. This person must be immensely powerful in order to trigger Hordak's magic.
It was unreal.
The Commander stared at the muddy ground and let go of the tree branch he held onto. There was no doubt, the Kings had finally arrived.
It was the only explanation.
Either way, it was not good news for anyone on Etheria.
Hordak wanted to be happy that the rebellion would finally be gone, but not now. Not when he isn't even a part of the Horde, he could never go back. And the King's arrival only proved this. The only thing the Horde Commander could see to be a bright side was the hope that Shadow Weaver would be used as their target practice.
But those chances seemed slim.
If Hordak was still in control he knew that target practice or some other such nonsense might have been the witch's punishment for her treachery. He knew that he couldn't give harsh punishments and that was his folly. Hordak couldn't rule a planet no matter how many times he boasted over his genius. The tyrant clenched his fists in anger. He knew he was strong, but he wasn't nearly as ruthless as his brother wanted him to be.
Hordak was different from many other commanders.
I know it was a little short, but yeah, you can't beat extreme violence. Now I know I've gone a little too far. Although if you've seen my posts on He-man(dot)org then you know I have said that stories cannot progress without some character death. So just in case: Octavia is dead, and the person killing everyone is Dragora. Nuff said. Now I'm finally back from my vacation in boston so I can now write more chapters, see you guys soon! Keep reading!
R&R!